10 ways to Attract and Retain Talented staff !!
/Employees come first. If you take care of your employees, they will take care of the clients." – Sir Richard Branson. " Founder“The Virgin Group”.
So how do you make your employees 100% proud of the job they are doing as per Sir Richard’s advice.
Attracting potential employees to an employer with one of the most powerful brand names i.e. World Bank certainly helps, but that doesn’t mean you attract the right people.
In the attached photos taken over the span of 12 years you see nearly all the same smiling faces.
Here are some of the most important factors that helped us retain such great talented staff in a low paying industry like the Fitness business.
1. Establish that you are a Hospitality Business and employ accordingly.
During my 32 years in Management I have always been a big believer in ex IHRSA President John McCarthy’s view that “The fitness business is a hospitality business—bottom line. Until people understand that, they really haven't entered the high road of the business”. (John McCarthy IHRSA President, CBI magazine, Oct 7, 2014)
By creating a community within a Corporation and doing all the things a good hospitality business does, like remembering names and providing a great service and product you will go a long way to creating value.
Of course you have to choose the right staff to work in a hospitality business. How you determine that is a key factor in attracting the right staff. While I am a big believer in higher education, I also looked at an applicant’s resume to see if they had worked in service industries or as a volunteer for a non-profit organization.
I would also schedule the face to face interview during our busiest time and have the potential employee tour the facility with me or my very popular Front desk person Dosseh. By doing this we could see how the applicant reacted to customer interaction and friendly banter. Did they seem shy or introverted, maybe even disinterested? or did they engage and seem enthusiastic with the interactions? This was a good way to observe body language and gauge if a person really is a true “people person.”
2. Create strong “Brand loyalty” for members and staff
Many books and articles have been written on Brand Loyalty. Creating Band loyalty starts with simply knowing people’s names, greeting them as they arrive and leave your center. A smile, and genuine warm hello and goodbye, makes a people feel like they are appreciated. This builds lasting relationships that at least make people think twice before joining another club.
People like to be recognized. The big mistake many Fitness Centers make is that once members’ sign on they become just another number. Most fitness centers are hopeless at this. Swipe your membership card and that is virtually the last human contact you have.
The same applies for people working at your fitness center. If the person who works at your center is treated as a professional is 100% proud of the job they're doing, if you give them the tools to do a good job, they're proud of the brand, if they were looked after, if they're treated well, then will be happy and do their best to make sure members get the best product possible and a nice experience. . If employees are just viewed as another source of Personal Training revenue they will not be fully committed and only provide an “I just do my job and go home “ service.
3. Support training and lifelong education
Creating a culture of lifelong learning and support of educational initiatives will ensure the staff stay current and provide members with the best facilities and services possible. This creates a culture where employees are appreciated, valued and made to feel part of something worthwhile.
At the World Bank Fitness Center we encouraged education, not just in Fitness. We also provided training in hospitality with professional organizations like Ritz Carlton and in personal development with sessions on Public Speaking, Voice Projection. Role plays on customer service and conflict resolution were another very effective educational tool.
4. Create a Mission statement and Service standards with strong staff buy in
For our team at the World Banks Fitness Center our key values were encapsulated in our CRAP Communication system and our Service goals and Action Plan for the Best Corporate Fitness Center in the Whole Wide World described in my previous Blogs.
While most businesses go through the requisite exercise of defining key values or composing mission statements, they often become just nicely framed murals hanging on the Managers wall. It is very important to understand the importance of regular and repetitive presentation of these core aspects of the business. This leads to another important aspect of attracting and retaining staff
5. Communicate, Clearly concisely and regularly
In my experience, the single biggest problem staff has with Management is lack of Communication. As General Manager of the 3 Centers,I would send out an email to all staff we called Mike’s Daily CRAP very early in the day (pre 6 a.m.). This was a concise email welcoming staff to the day and detailing any relevant, operational issues, promotions etc. and tying this in with our CRAP acronym and our Vision to be “the best corporate Fitness Center in the Whole Wide World.(BCFC in the WWW)
6. Fortnightly Fitness Staff Meetings and Annual retreats
Rather than rely solely on words on a page, our fortnightly team meeting for all Fitness Staff was an opportunity to reinforce our core values and vision in real time. The meeting Agenda would often include “Story Time” where we focused on examples that reinforced our Service Goals and gathered staff’s input on any pending activities.
7. Always Drink Upstream from the herd
Will Rogers an American humorist and social commentator penned this quote back in the 1920’s. It applies the old farmer’s wisdom of smart animals and leaders stay apart from the crowd and don’t give in easily to Group Think.
Drinking upstream where the water is clear and clean is much better than downstream where it may be polluted.
The fitness industry is rife with misinformation and new trends and fads that are passed off as irrefutable fact. Likewise in Management there are those all too willing to pass of their views as being the only correct solutions.
Our goal was to have meetings that not only reinforced our Mission but were enjoyable and not boring. We also tried our best to keep away from the cringe worthy team building activities and enforced frivolity often seen in corporate settings. Our goal was to treat fitness staff as professionals by imparting some new knowledge in an innovative fashion .
8. An Open Door Policy
As an employee and member of fitness centers I always thought there was nothing worse than seeing a Manager’s office door closed and blinds drawn. An open door policy encourages openness and transparency between Management, members and employees. Being available for staff and open and honest in your discussion will foster an environment of trust and respect
9. Rule 11 … A strict no Dickhead or Diva Policy.
To some this may seem a trifle crude and vulgar. We kept it that way to make it as impactfull as possible. In a dynamic, Fitness Center there is no room for staff who are selfish, lazy and demanding. The service goals which were formulated with heavy staff input give clear guidelines on what constitutes Rule 11 behavior.
10. Most important Try not to be a Rule 11 yourself by Managing from the heart
Numerous studies show that Employees don’t quite their job they quit their Managers. So try not to be a Rule 11 yourself
Respect is the universal language. If the actions and decisions you make are from the heart, rather than “I am right mentality”, they may not always be popular but they will be respected.
So there you have it folks , 10 ways to attract and retain staff. Let me know what you think.
world Bank Fitness Staff at Aussie mike’s 50 th in 2017
WORLD BANK fITNESS sTAFF IN 2009 WITH fITNESS mANAGEMENT Magazine AWARD FOR “fIT ON THE TRIP tRAVEL pROGRAM”
Fitness staff at aussie MIKE’S LAST DAY jULY 2017